Growing Pains Part Three---Resurrection
by angie9281
Summary: After a attack by lingering faerie rebels during a trip to Faerie to visit their twins, a desperate Sookie is willing to do whatever it takes to bring Eric back from death. what demons from the past will rear their ugly head again and threaten everyone once more?


**Chapter 1**

They came to her side, her screams echoing in their minds as they stopped dead in their tracks at the gruesome scene before them. It had looked like it had been a ambush from all sides, judging by the faerie remains that were on the upper sides of the buildings and the sheer number of piles of faerie dust remaining mixed with blood that had no doubt been spilled by the faeries as they attacked Eric but as he had attacked them. But now, all they saw left of the Viking was his usual leather jacket and the enchanted bracelet he had gotten from Niall that allowed him access to Faery and some limited day walking ability. Slowly, with trembling hands, Sookie plucked the bracelet from the bloody remains of what could only be her husband. Tears streamed down her face as the twins crouched to either side of her and took her hands in theirs, bonding in a way they would not have preferred ever, any resentment and anger Adele had felt over being 'abandoned" was long gone, as it appeared so was Eric.

But Niall seemed eerily calm about the situation and as he approached closer, he began to speak to Sookie. "It may seen hopeless, Sookie but I still feel his presence. We may not be too late. There is one way I can see to bring him back however, you may not like it as you have borne witness to something similar before. A dead vampire being reborn."

Sniffling, she stiffened. There was only one vampire that had met the true death who had come back that she knew of, save for Godric and Tara. And she pointed that out to Niall. "can't you do what you did with them, bringing them back to life with your magic?"

Niall frowned and shook his head. "Even my power has limitations and I unfortunately used up the last of my ability to restore dead vampires back to their undead life. What I am talking about, I know you fear it. But time is of the essence and you need to trust in me and yourself. To keep him from becoming as your ex had become while under the influence of that enigmatic goddess."

"We were shown…images of that incident. Lilith and your former boyfriend getting all messed up….from drinking her…oh….." Hjalmar said, putting two and two together. "But Bill drank it…the blood….how can we possibly-"

Shaking on her knees beside the remains of her beloved, Sookie let the tears fall into the mess and for a moment, she saw something strange, something almost unreal. Slight sparks appeared when her tears hit the remains and she looked at her grandfather as if to confirm he had seen what she had.

"You see? It is not too late. Do you trust in me, Sookie?" he asked her as Hjalmar helped her to her feet, steadying her as she was still trembling from the trauma of it all. Even Adele was teary eyes and shaky. And Sookie knew that even her stoic son was saddened by this turn of events.

"I trust you grandpa Niall." she blubbered.

"Then we must prepare the temple.." he replied.

 **Chapter 2**

She had been put into a enchanted sleep by Niall, who had said he needed her rested some before they proceeded with what was to happen to try to resurrect the fallen Viking. "Hey." a voice said, trying to rouse her from her restful sleep, no doubt made possible by some magic. There was no way she ever could have fallen asleep otherwise, after what she had seen. Knowing he had killed the remaining dark fae to save them all, that he had led them away from his family to try to spare them-that was what Niall has suspected had happened, resulting in the ambush. Nevertheless, all the dark fae were destroyed and as she was helped up by her children, everything came crashing back to Sookie as she started to sob again.

"It will be alright….no matter what, we are a family and we will get through this together. I was wrong to think he….you….anyone would have just abandoned us. To send us away without another thought." Adele confessed. "We want to be a family and we love you guys. We're just sorry we had to grow up so dang fast."

Sookie couldn't help but laugh at Adele's words and hugged her daughter who was about her height. "Things seem to happen for a reason, I have come to learn, though it is never really easy…..where are we going?"

"The temple." Hjalmar replied and taking his sisters hand and Sookie's into his, he teleported them into a white marble room. Niall was seated on a dais before a pool of sparkling, clear water that was the cleanest water she had ever seen. She also saw he was holding a urn of sorts and a sinking feeling hit her, knowing without a doubt what was within. And that thought, that knowledge was enough to bring her to shaking and trembling again, her brown eyes tearing up again.

"Come on, be strong…Niall thinks this can work. But it will take all of us to try to keep the worst from happening." Adele said gently to her mother, who nodded. "The water is pure, infused with the magic of only the kindest of the fae who have ruled over the years. Grandpa Niall told us the story of this place. It is purified with good magic, light magic every single day. The water is purer than pure."

"This….it just brings back bad memories….granted, Bill got to be himself again eventually but….what if we aren't as lucky this time?" Sookie wasn't comforted much by what Adele had just said.

"Don't even talk like that. It is not going to help anything by being negative." Niall said as he placed the urn in the center of the pool, which was a good five feet deep and as he used his power to guide it gently to the bottom of the pool, he looked at the distraught Sookie.. "Your tears are mingled within the remains I gathered up." Niall said to Sookie. "You would be surprised the power of your emotions are, even within tears. As part fae, the magic within them I hope will temper whatever may result from what we are about to attempt."

"What if….what if something goes wrong…" she asked as memories of the past flashed in her mind, of the monster she remembered Bill had become, not just after the drinking of Lilith's blood but before, when he had become obsessed with her. Her influence was strong on him even then.

"Things will work out. I promise you that." Niall replied firmly. "And I keep my promises. First, we all must throw our light into the pool to try to temper any dark influence that the blood may try to put into him." Niall said.

Nodding, the twins and Sookie, one by one, summoned their light and blasted the water, all the while the urn remaining firmly upright in the bottom. The room vibrated with the magic unleashed as Niall added his own light to the pool. The water sparkled bright as he produced the vial of blood that Sookie dreaded needed to be used in this procedure. But there was no other option and time was of the essence. Taking the vial, he walked over to Sookie and placed it in her hand. "You must get into the pool and put it into the urn and let the magic do what it may." Niall was exuding confidence but even Sookie saw there was some fear in his eyes that something could go terribly wrong. However, they all knew they had to at least try this if they were ever to see the Viking again.

Dressed in jeans and a t shirt, she didn't care about getting soaking wet. It was not high on her list of concerns now. Walking down a few steps into the pool, she clutched the ominous blood and plucked the urn from the cleansing water, the pure water of the sacred temple. Opening the urn, she took a deep breath and poured the contents in, holding her breath as she did so, the twins and Niall looking on with intensity. The urn began to tremble as soon as she finished pouring the small amount of blood into the urn and she let it drop into the water, allowing the pure water to become blood red as she froze in fear.

The twins entered the churning water and pulled Sookie from the froth that was beginning to form, the water no longer pure but dark red as sparks scattered through the mixture. The room began to shake as lightning formed from the sparks of magic in the water. And then, a figure began to rise from the water and there came a primal sound that was so terrifying, so familiar that it was like Bill all over again, that terrible growling sound he had made when he was reborn from the blood. And as she ran from the temple, she caught a glimpse of his reflection in the polished stone as all the light from the lit lanterns went out. And the reflection of the twins and Niall falling unconscious by forces unknown, though she had a bad feeling she did know, in fact, the cause.

 **Chapter 3**

She stopped in her tracks, not about to abandon her family to a possible swift death. She had thought she was being chased but as she retreated back into the temple, she held her breath as she saw him, frozen in place and peering down into the blood riddled pool at his feet. And then he looked to the three unconscious bodies on the floor. Slowly, she had her hands light up with her power and walked on wobbly legs closer to where her husband stood.

"Eric?" she asked with a shaky voice. "Are you-"

He looked from his reflection in the water to her, slowly and the intensity in those eyes of his should have held something more than was there. "You did this to me?"

"I….I wanted to save you…..we-we wanted to save you. I can't go on without you. I-"

He fled from the temple in a bloody blur and with her fae and vamp senses, she could detect the changes in him and it felt familiar. Disturbingly so, yet there was a subtle difference that she couldn't put her finger on. She went to help her children and grandfather as they began coming to. "Did he do that to you? Everything happened so fast, I didn't see."

"He Didn't harm us….it was a ripple of energy that came from him, nothing like I have ever felt before. You, being his bonded, were apparently immune." Niall said as he got to his feet and he looked at the twins with relief on his face. "He's back. But-"

Sookie pulled the bracelet from her pocket. "He's trapped in Faery without this. I am going to find him and talk to him. I knew this wouldn't be easy but didn't realize just how…hard…." she leaned against a cool marble wall as Niall restored light to the temple. "I will go myself. You all just stay here."

"But-" Hjalmar protested.

"If I need you two then I will send for you. I have to handle this alone. I have a feeling….it's got to be me. Doing this alone. Please." Sookie pleaded with her grown children and looked to her grandfather, who looked wary of her going off after the reborn vampire by herself but he knew she was right. For all they knew right now, they were all in danger should they all go after him.

"You send up a blast of light if you get into a bind." Niall ordered sternly. "And if you are not back within a hour, we're coming after you anyway."

"Fair enough." she replied and using her vamp speed, she left them with a brave smile and Adele immediately lashed out, hitting the wall with her fist, causing a chink of stone to come loose. "Sorry grandpa…I just….want to help. After all you showed they have been through and the drama that just keeps on coming….can't they ever be happy? can't we ever be a family?"

"We are always going to be a family and I believe that with all these events that transpire, we have all gotten only stronger and more determined to keep what we love safe and secure. Your parents are no ordinary beings and only if you two have faith in them can they realize their dream of a truly strong and unified family. To think of the family members you've not even met….and I will see to it that it becomes a possibility. For now, we need to go make sure the people in the city are safe after the dark fae attack."

Nodding serenely, the twins followed their grandfather out of the temple and out of the palace, to the only world they truly knew as home.

 **Chapter 4**

She didn't have time to enjoy the lushness and beauty she had come to know Faery held within its boundaries. It was still new to her, getting to come and go as she pleased between realms and she wished someday she could have time to relax and enjoy it. To explore. As she walked with extreme caution towards a setting she was not exactly surprised to end up, she tried to push away the fears she was walking to her death and as she reached the lush lagoon, she remembered his love of the water, having grown up by the North sea. And here he was, standing on the shore of the twinkling lake, the stars overhead twinkling and the moonlight casting shadows that gave her chills.

"You shouldn't be here." he said, not looking at her but up at the starry night. "I'm a threat….to everything you want, including myself."

"I couldn't just let you go. I did that once and you nearly died on that mountain, burning to a crisp. I am not going to ever give up on you. You are still….you."

"Am I? did you not realize it was me that knocked the kids and your grandfather out cold, slamming them against the ground? I did it. It wasn't anything else. And I can already tell, I can feel that I can do far much worse than I ever could have before this all happened. "

"You've got self control. You can handle this like you've handled everything else you've faced in your life. I know this has to be unnerving to you…how can it not, going from dead dead to…..well, you and have seen this before."

"Yeah." Eric replied bitterly. "And we had so much fun the first go around and now its actually happened to me. I can't be around you or anyone….not like this. I never wanted this for myself, I tried to stop Bill from having the same thing happen to him and-"

"You. Are. Not Bill." she spat angrily. "He was not as strong as you and he let the powers he got go to his head. And it all worked out in the end, didn't it? He got to be himself again."

"Yes. Only after he nearly died giving his blood to those in the vamp camp from burning up in the sun….somehow I don't think I have that option. This situation is completely different. I didn't actually drink the blood. I was nothing more than a science project, immersed in the blood of that bitch Lilith."

She felt as if he had slapped her in the face. "You really rather would have died instead of being brought back? Even knowing what it would do to me?" To our family?" Sookie was more hurt than anything else right at this point and the cool look he was giving her was making her dead inside. "You can use whatever new powers you have to be a even better protector. A better fighter. You worry that you'll go off the rails-"

He glared at her as he got right into her face and for a moment, she saw the hint of madness she remembered seeing in Bill during that dark time in her life. "Leave me. Now. Before I do something I can't help."

She remained firmly standing there, ignoring the fact that he was cleansed of all the blood he had risen from yet was still unabashedly unclothed. "I am not leaving you. I am going to fight for you, for our family….for everything we have ever wanted. I know you're still you and that it is the fear you have that is making you act like-" she was stopped as she found herself thrown backwards by a telepathic attack, slamming her into a trunk of, ironically enough, a weeping willow tree. Weeping was all she wanted to do at this point and as she groggily sat up, her eyes met his and he looked horrified by what he had unintentionally done.

"Sookie, I didn't mean to do….I-" he found himself in a rare position. Being at a loss for words.

"I know you didn't." she replied as she let him help her up, the gash in the back of her head bleeding and causing his fangs to inadvertently come down. But it was when she stumbled a little, that he drew back from her, seeing he had actually hurt her more than she was letting on. Granted she would heal fast but seeing the blood, smelling the blood he had caused to flow from her made him step back from her. To his shock, she shook it off and walked right up to him, looking up at his stony face, seeing the torment within them. It pained her to see he was hurting, confused. Troubled. "I know you can handle this. These powers can be used in better ways and let me ask you this, do you still feel like yourself? Do you feel….her?"

He frowned as he closed his eyes and to his amazement, he shook his head. "I do feel like me….I don't feel any of….her. But her power. I think the water in the pool, it purified the blood, keeping her influence from tainting me as it did Bill."

Sookie touched his hand and closed her eyes, allowing her light to look within him and she managed to smile with relief. "you're right. There's nothing of her I sense. It's you, but you're…..more." she slipped the bracelet back onto his right wrist, the bracelet that allowed him some day walking power and to travel between worlds as he pleased.

He pulled away from her and turned back to the lake, the gently waves rippling making him feel more grounded, more centered. He still didn't like that he had a part of the ancient goddess within him, that it was thanks to that he was once more walking and talking. "I can't take the chance that I could still wind up like he did. I remember the things Bill said to you while under the influence of Lilith and even though I may not feel her myself, it is still part of her that flows through me now and I can't bear to think that I could become like he did." he didn't look at her as he spoke but gazed at the water again.

"How many times do we need to go around in circles like this?" she asked after a few peaceful moments of silence. "How many times do we keep worrying that we will hurt each other again? You and I have changed a lot over the years and it took a long time to realize we were meant for each other. I don't care about anything other than the fact that you are back. Again. Back from the dead thanks to the miracle that was in part due to that blood. But you forget, there was faerie magic involved too. Which is why I don't believe you will end up becoming like he did. And if you decide to leave me? Well…..then that's it. I can't keep going through this, faerie-vamp or not, there is still only so much my heart can take, Eric." she turned away and started to storm through the woods out of the sanctuary of the lake, as she saw out of the corner of her eye him flying off in a huff. It was then she was struck down by the cackling voices from the bushes nearby

 **Chapter 5**

She has seen him fly up into the air before the attack and being restrained by the iron chains that were weakening her light, she kicked and scratched to try to escape the faerie rebels that had apparently been the lone survivors of the brief battle and attempt on her family's safety and lives.

"He won't come back for you. He's a freak. Brought back to life by something evil. And now, as you can see, there's clearly no love left for you. He ignored your pleas and now, where's your bog Viking to rescue you? You were wrong in thinking that he could be different than the other vampire was. The blood of Lilith will always be dangerous business." one of the faeries said, a slender dark haired woman who forced Sookie to meet her cold blue eyes. "the only way he will come for you is if he can come to terms with his new lease on life and the powers he has gained and judging by what we saw….well, I wouldn't be surprised if he ran right back to your world. To get away from you before he decided you were, in fact, nothing more than a distraction. Or a meal dressed in a cute little blonde package. And when we are done with you, it's off to finish the rest of your family so we can take the throne. Finally get some touch faeries in charge rather than the peace loving wuss that your grandfather is."

The other two fae laughed as Sookie felt her power draining as she tried fighting the female fae, who was somehow managing to drain her powers with the eerie glow her hands were emitting. That burgundy color was turning more of a dark violet as Sookie's power was being drained and her life was ebbing. Tears ran down her face as she tried calling out for him to help. And then there was en explosion, a sonic boom of sorts that sent the three dark faeries flying away from the neutralized Sookie. She managed to prop herself up on her elbows, weakened from the attack on her but strong enough to sit up. As she did so, she bore witness to the extent of his new abilities. Watching him tear apart the three faeries without even touching them, she was terrified, yet couldn't; look away from the sight. She had seen him in a rage before, but this was different, a new beast, as it were. And the savagery exhibited by Eric's new telekinetic power drove home the fact he was indeed different than before. Her eyes met his as he finished the three off and she noticed he had managed to put on some pants at least.

Instead of coming over to her, he hesitated as he looked at Sookie, who clearly needed to be freed from the iron and needed some blood to help heal from the faeries' attack. It had been a long time since he saw that look in her eyes, that genuine fear he had hoped he would not have to see there again. He remembered seeing that fear when she had dealt with the Lilith infused Bill, among other incidents they had shared together. "Sookie….I don't want to-"

"Come over here. Help me." she pleaded. "I trust you,."

"But you're petrified. Of me and what I just did to those faeries."

"I am not afraid of you."

"You lie."

Sookie looked at him a moment. "Ok, I am a little scared of you. I feel like déjà vu all over again, yet it's not. You are not what he was. Help me. Please. I need you. don't be ashamed of what you can do. You taught me to embrace being fae now I guess I need to teach you to embrace your own…evolution."

Biting his lip, he obeyed and as he approached her, his power blasted the chains clear off of her without touching them. He knelt down beside her and to her shock, he started to break down in bloody tears. "I truly thought you would leave me…that you saw me as a monster like you once did years back."

There were so few people in his life he would reveal such emotion to but seeing him like this, she stroked his hair. "Right now, you are nothing more than human like to me right now. That you care, that you cry….you are still and forever will be my Eric. Let's wait a few minutes before we head back. I imagine they are going to come after us soon." as she accepted a couple sips of blood from the gash he had made on his forearm, she was able to relax in his arms, feeling herself healing faster then she ever could have as a mere mortal. This was her life, one thing after another. Instead of being annoyed by it, she was now finally beginning to feel the same joie de vivre that Eric had always possessed. And she liked it.

 **Chapter 6**

Back in the palace, there was a relieved group of faerie guards that saw the two alive and well, a little rattled from everything yet still themselves. And Niall looked the most relieved as he appraised the Viking using his own magic. He deduced the same as Eric had. "It was the light and the magic of the pond that tempered the lingering influence of Lilith when you were reborn. It is why your transformation is far more subdued than Bill's was. But you clearly have become more dangerous, more powerful."

"The better to protect my family with." Eric replied with a serious look after Niall had finished appraising his condition. The twins were relieved to see their father hadn't, after all, become the monster that Bill had become after his involvement with Lilith's blood.

"Looking a little rough there, pops." Hjalmar said as he shook hands with his father, welcoming him back to the palace and to his living state after being so briefly a messy pile of goo in a urn.

"Pops?" Eric said arching a eyebrow. "Makes me sound like some old, decrepit…"

"Well, he's got the old part right, doesn't he?" Adele interjected with a grin that reminded Eric very much of Sookie who was holding her twins hands, a family reunited and stronger than ever.

"I am only as old as I look." Eric replied with a sneer and a twinkle in those blue eyes of his.

"Yes. And you don't look a day over five hundred." Sookie giggled. It was nice for him to hear that laugh again. He looked at her with a amused smirk as he slapped her hard on the rear, to which the twins rolled their eyes.

"Come on, none of that in front of the kids. Get a freaking room." Hjalmar made a fake gagging noise as Adele rolled her eyes.

"A very good suggestion." Eric replied.

"Since you two have spent more time battling than being able to visit, why not stay here for the night? I can have a feast prepared for those of you who can eat and as for the vampire, I have some special blood out aside, if you so choose."

"I think I will….pass on that offer for now. Until we get home." Eric gave Sookie a knowing look and she too rolled her eyes. Yeah, some things would definitely never change.

"Well, for now, let's enjoy our time together. To finally have a true family dinner." Niall gestured for his unusual family to follow him into the private dining room. And for the rest of the evening, the family was able to truly bond and reunite, knowing that they could never be together forever physically, but at least they were only separated by realms. Realms that were so easily passed through. It would never be easy, to live separate lives when their time together as a family all under one roof was so brief. But all were in agreement, living certainly beat the alternative.

 **The End**


End file.
